I walked down the steps of the small college slowly, staring down at my feet to make sure I wouldn't trip. The sun streaming down from the breaks in the clouds and the spaces in the green tree leaves made everything have a very perfect, magical feel.

The grudging, grey first day of school mood didn't fit the beautiful campus at all.

We were both young when I first saw you

I close my eyes

And the flashback starts

Abruptly, my body was tingling, and the hair on the back of my neck stood up in reaction to the gripping feeling, an unexpected chill running down my spine from the thrill of the sensation.

Someone was watching me.

Startled, I looked up with wide eyes as I walked past a massive oak tree, and for a split second, everything about the scenery changed.

-:-

I watch as smooth mountains of luxurious fabrics- elegant golds, brilliant scarlets, and stunning blues- twirled together gracefully as the people dance to a simultaneous rhythm, a graceful painting of motion…

The harmonious violins playing softly in the background suddenly disappear when somebody whispers a secret in my ear, his sweet breath tickling my skin, sending chills down my back…

Lace fans flutter around the room, and I shield my face shyly from the handsome man, my heart fluttering…

I look up through my eyelashes, my breath catching in my throat as I see him for the first time, twice in the same instant, looking through eyes of two different eras.

He stares back at me intently, and then all I could see was a pair of hauntingly familiar, devastatingly gorgeous emerald green eyes.

I'm standing there

On a balcony in summer air

I was pulled back into the past, and the memory was as clear as if it had happened only seconds ago, utterly real.

I was standing at an iron- wrought balcony, staring at the midnight black sky, the stars a brilliant white, dazzling in contrast against the blanket of night. The air was heavy and warm with summer heat, making each breath thick with emotion and feeling.

See the lights,

See the party the ball gowns

See you make your way through the crowd

And say hello

Little did I know….

My attention was interrupted by that familiar awareness of someone staring at you intently. I turned around slowly to face the ballroom, curious to see who had to be watching me, all alone at an empty balcony when the party was inside, stunning with adornment and embellishment.

I felt the tiniest twinge of disappointment when I saw no one, turning back around. I opened my lace fan with a flourish, gently percolating cool air to my face and neck, suddenly feeling warm.

"Excuse me for my asking, but would your name be Juliet, by any chance?" A soft, melodic voice floated around my head, making me stiffen in surprise. I covered my face with my fan indifferently, self- conscious.

I look up carefully through my lashes, afraid to look at him in the eye, only to see complete dissatisfaction when he would truly see my face. The face of a dull girl.

But I was curious to meet this person who seemed to share an interest with one of my favorite books of all time. Romeo and Juliet.

I stifled a gasp.

This charismatic man's eyes were burning a brilliant, scorching forest that had not been burned.

My heart stopped beating, and he smiled the most magnificent, gorgeous crooked grin that made me feel weak in the knees.

"Bella Swan. Sorry to disappoint you," I murmured timidly, trying to remember how to breathe when I looked into his eyes.

"Not a disappointment in the least. I imagine her to be utterly plain compared to your beauty and fascination." I stared in disbelief.

"Your imagination must be entirely off tonight. You must be Romeo," I said. His beautiful smile only widened, making my breathing hitch.

"Edward Cullen."

That you were Romeo

You were throwing pebbles

And my daddy said stay away from Juliet

And I was crying on the staircase

Begging you please don't go,

And I said

Edward Cullen was the most charming, intriguing man I had ever seen. He was polite, wonderful, and incredibly smart. His voice was like the smoothest of velvet, and every time he looked at me, he took my breath away. I could talk to him forever and never feel tired, only craving more. I was falling in love.

And I had only just met him.

The party lights were dimming and the number of guests trickled down to only a small number of people.

We were leaning against the banister of the elegant spiral staircase, into a deep discussion over favorite plays when a booming voice interrupted our conversation.

My father.

"And who is this man, Isabella?" my father, Charlie Swan, was a fair man, trying to find the good in people. But when he saw me with Edward, the threat in his voice was as clear as any father could make it.

"Cullen." A lump formed in my throat when I heard the distaste in his voice. Charlie may have been fair, but only with a very private, isolated group of people. The other persons were merely superfluous and not wanted to him. "It's time to leave," he said in a steely, hard voice, each word voiced separated from the other.

I looked up at Edward again, eyes desperate, a few silent tears trickling down my cheek. He stared down at me with unfathomable eyes.

"Isabella! It's time to say goodnight to Mr. Cullen!" I didn't like it at all the way he said Edward's name. Like it was a curse.

That night I sat in my room alone, staring at the wall, not seeing anything. All I could think of was emerald. My thoughts were broken up by a soft tapping noise at my window. I ran across the room and threw it open, leaning over as far as I could to see out in the darkness. Edward stood below my window, a pile of small pebbles in his hand. He was smiling.

Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone

I'll be waiting all there's left to do is run

You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess

Its a love story baby just say yes

"Edward!" I whispered, smiling back. I reached my hand out. He grinned tenderly and took a large step, getting as close as he could without running into the large, towering rose bush guarding my window to graze his fingers against mine. We were just about to meet when everything broke into a million tiny shards.

"ISABELLA MARIE SWAN!"

Oh no.

Edward's panicked eyes met mine and for a split second, I was ready to jump out the window and run with Edward forever.

The garden truly was enchanted in its own way. Every leaf on every oak tree or bush or flower was a glimmering bright green. Every petal was silk smooth, never seeming to wilt, sending a sweet honey scent to hover in the air around our heads, making me dizzy with bliss. If you looked up, you could see glimpses of the dazzling stars through the cracks in the looming trees. Flowers bloomed beautifully and the small relaxed path curved and winded naturally through the large garden.

As I walked through the massive trees, trying to find Edward, I tried to keep as quiet as possible. If anyone heard me and saw Edward before I did, it would be the end.

I grinned when I finally saw him; I would know his handsome face anywhere. He jogged up to me, ducking under a branch to meet me. He opened his mouth to say something, but I quickly stopped him, placing a finger over his soft lips, his eyes immediately closing.

Escape this town for a little while

Cause you were Romeo I was a scarlet letter

And my daddy said stay away from Juliet

But you were everything to me

I was begging you please don't go and I said

I stared into his emerald eyes, blazing under my gaze, feeling like I could see into his very soul. I didn't know how long we stood there, but I finally fractured the silence.

"I love you," my voice was the gentlest of whispers, but it sliced through the silence like a knife.

He smiled tenderly at me, gently twisting a piece of mahogany lock that had fallen out of the pile of hair on the top of my head back behind my ear. I beamed back at him, our faces only inches apart.

As if in slow motion, he placed a hand on the small of my back, gently pulling my body closer. His sweet breath tickling my face, intoxicating me. He tilted his head to the side, parting his lips ever so slightly, and pressed them to mine, his other hand resting on my neck, his thumb caressing my cheek, light as a feather.

"BELLA! COME HERE RIGHT NOW WHERE I CAN SEE YOU!"

Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone

I'll be waiting all there's left to do is run

You be the prince and I'll be the princess

Its a love story baby just say yes

We broke away at once, eyeing each other with mixed looks of fear and love.

"I had better leave," he whispered, eyes never leaving me. I nodded reluctantly, staring back. He took a step backwards, when I suddenly leapt forward, grabbing his hand.

"Meet me by the large oak outside the church!" I begged.

"I will," he murmured.

Romeo save me, don't try to tell me how to feel

This love is difficult, but its real

Don't be afraid we'll make it out of this mess

Its a love story baby just say yes,

"Promise me!" I pleaded. I knew that when I got back, I would get punished and yelled at for being out late, threatened to be sent away where I would be taught the proper ways, suspected of transgression, and ordered around about whom to talk to.

Edward looked at me in shock, as if I didn't trust him, before taking both of my hands in his, placing a gentle kiss on them, sending waves of electricity lancing up my arms.

"I promise."

I got tired of waiting

Wondering if you were ever coming around

My faith in you was fading

When I met you on the outskirts of town, and I said

I stood hidden in the shadow of the tall church, across from the soaring oak, restless. I would wait forever for Edward, yet I couldn't help but feel anxious, unwanted, and rejected when, after two hours of waiting, Edward still hadn't made an appearance.

I leaned against the cool brick, closing my eyes as I fought the stinging tears. Of course, this wasn't real. I had told him that I had loved him.

And he never answered.

"Bella?" My eyes snapped open when I heard the voice. His voice.

"Edward?" I asked breathlessly, spinning around desperately. My foot caught on my long sapphire blue dress, and I was sailing to the hard dirt. I braced myself for the tough pain of the fall, but it never came. Instead, I was embraced in a pair of warm, strong arms.

Romeo save me I've been feeling so alone

I keep waiting for you but you never come

Is this in my head, I don't know what to think

He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said

"Edward!" I threw my arms around his neck. "I thought you weren't going to come. I'm so sorry about what I said, I didn't mean to-" he silenced me with a gentle kiss.

"I promised you, didn't I?" he murmured, voice ringing with sincere and faithful devotion. I could only nod in elation. He looked at me for a long, intense moment before doing something that made me sway on my feet.

He knelt on one knee and took a dazzling diamond ring.

Marry me Juliet you'll never have to be alone

I love you and that's all I really know

I talked to your dad go pick out a white dress

Its a love story baby just say yes

He looked up at me with those beautiful eyes, scorching and burning with passion.

"Isabella Marie Swan. I love you more than anything in the world, and I promise that you will always be my Juliet forever until my heart stops beating. Will you marry me?"

I couldn't breathe. He said that he loved me. He wanted to marry me. To be my perfect, glorious, faithful Romeo.

I could only utter one word that would seal my fate with Edward forever, yet it said everything in the world.

"Yes."

-:-

We were both young when I first saw you…

I stood there, in front of an old oak tree in front of the new high school on my first day, still staring at the one person in the world that I knew everything about without saying one hello to him.

I knew his name immediately.

Edward Cullen.

(Two years later)

The second I stepped out of my truck and onto the thick grass on the college grounds, I ran into a small, dark haired girl, her hair spiked up in a stylish matter, looking like a pixie. I laughed. "Alice! How was your summer?" I fought a smile.

"You should know, you spent more than half of it with me or my brother!" I smiled in agreement. I had to ask.

"Speaking of which…. Have you seen him?" I asked, suddenly anxious to see him. Alice let out a trilling, bell-like giggle.

"Calm down, I have a note." she waggled her perfect eyebrows at me, bright green eyes twinkling as she handed me a folded piece of thick white paper.

"Thanks," I told her gratefully. A mischievous look washed over her face, and I instinctively feared for my life.

"No problem… Juliet!" I gasped at her in shock and horror.

"Alice! You didn't!" before I could throttle her, she danced away, darting into the back doors of the school.

I sighed, leaning against the cold brick wall in the shade, and I had the stranest feeling of déjà vu.

I could hear the principal giving the first year students a tour across the courtyard. "This college, as you can see," he said proudly, his bald spot shining in the sun, "is very new. It used to be a church for ages, but we finally had to tear it down and turn it to our marvelous school you have now." I blinked a few times before looking down at the note in my hand. I brushed it off, and opened the letter, engrossed.

Juliet-

Meet me at our place soon- I'll be waiting.

-Romeo

I was off, running around the school, tripping over my feet and catching myself at the last minute, dashing between two groups of people, papers flying everywhere.

As I rounded the corner of the front of the school, I slowed, searching for him at our place- the great oak where I first saw him. There he was, bronze hair shining brilliantly in the sun.

I walked up to him slowly, meeting his scorching emerald eyes evenly, beaming. He opened his arms to me, and I welcomed them happily. He leaned down, whispering in my ear accusingly, making me shiver.

"You kept me waiting."

I laughed.

"Were you losing faith?" I asked in mock horror. He grinned, his handsome face dazzling.

"So are you coming tonight?" I asked Edward when he broke away from me, breathless. He arched one eyebrow.

"If you prove to me that you want me to. Only if you truly need to see me…"

"How?" I questioned instantly, wanting to confirm how much I wanted him, how much I needed him with me.

"First…," he whispered, taking one large hand and putting it under my chin, lifting my face up to be level with his. "You look into my eyes…" I did so, staring into his endless, blazing emerald eyes, forgetting how to breathe. "Then…" he trailed off, his voice thick with emotion.

"Then?" I asked, breathless. He grinned my favorite crooked grin.

"You just…" he paused to kiss me again.

"Just what?" I demanded, breaking away and gasping for air.

"Just say yes."

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